Belding tops Godwin Heights in thriller

The Black Knights of Belding donned pink to take on the Godwin Heights Wolverines in an OK Silver match up Friday, Oct 6, for their annual Pink Game.

Jeannie GregorySports Editor

BELDING – The Black Knights of Belding donned pink to take on the Godwin Heights Wolverines in an OK Silver match up Friday, Oct 6, for their annual Pink Game. The game was part of Belding's Believe Week, which is a fundraising effort for the B Foundation.

The teams both boasted 5-1 records entering the game, with the Wolverines coming fresh off their first loss of the season last week against conference foe Kelloggsville. Belding's only loss came in week two, in a 1-point game that found them falling to Lakewood after a failed 2-point conversion in the final seconds of the game.

The score was knotted at 21 at the end of the first half, with both teams showing plenty of talent on both sides of the ball. Godwin Heights hit pay dirt first, electing to receive the ball first. They showed a potent offensive attack, both on the ground and in the air in their first possession, finding the end zone at the 9:09 mark. Belding offense answered quickly, starting at their own 46 and breaking the goal line at 7:43 on a number of James Daniel rushes, the final one a 13-yard run into the end zone The Paden Rousseau PAT was good and the score was tied 7-7. Both teams scored two more times in the half, with the Wolverines taking the lead and Belding answering. The Black Knights scored on a 7-yard Daniel rush with just 54 ticks left on the clock in the first quarter, and then saw Daniel blaze down the field on a 60-yard touchdown run at the 4:48 mark in the second quarter to tie it up again.

“They won the toss and elected to receive,” said Belding head coach Joe Schwander. “I think they were very confident in their offense and they did, they went down the field and scored. And we played chase. I think our kids did a good job of shortening their drives. Their drives were long drives, they're a quick-strike team. We bent a lot and broke a little bit in the end zone, but I think that favored us in the game.”

The game saw plenty of offensive action from both teams and Belding played catch up the first half, but the second half was a different story. A constant rain made passing a more difficult proposition for Godwin Heights. On Belding's second possession they started an offensive march at their own 35-yard line and utilized the talents of Tyler Cooper, Daniel, Riley Hart and Nick Heintzelman to move the ball down the field. A couple of Trent Collins quarterback keepers put the ball within inches and Daniel broke the goal line to give Belding their first lead of the game at 29-27 after a successful Cole Reeves 2-point conversion. Godwin Heights had the ball and a big defensive play by Belding had the Wolverines' quarterback scrambling in his back field before he threw a long pass that was intercepted by Collins. Belding started at their own 38 and moved the ball for a score with 15.8 seconds left in the third quarter on a 57-yard Daniels rush to take the lead 35-21. Godwin Heights was able to score at the 10:37 mark in the fourth to bring the score to 35-28. Belding answered on their next possession moving the ball up the field at their own 35 and eventually scoring on a Daniel 13-yard run, followed by a successful PAT by Rousseau to move the score to 42-28. Godwin Heights scored with just 1:22 left in the game to bring the score to 42-35 and Belding was able to run out the clock.

Belding had 475 total yard of offense, with 24 of that in the air and 451 on the ground. Daniel had an amazing game tallying 331 rushing yards on 28 carries and 6 touchdowns to lead the team. Hart and Cooper had 39 apiece and Heintzelman recorded 35. Tyler Saucier led the Belding defense with 3 tackles, followed by Hart, Cole Reeves and Tyler Smith, who each tallied 2. Collins recorded an interception.

“They missed on a couple of throws in the second half,” said Schwander. “I think that was the difference. They put themselves in second and ten and third and ten and our kids stepped up and stopped them. And the interception was huge. The scramble and that whole play and for our guys to stay in coverage and make their way back to the ball was huge. To be able to get a chance to go up two scores was significant.”

The win moves Belding's record to 6-1. Next up for the Black Knights is an away game against conference rival Kelloggsville, who was 6-0 heading into Friday night's contest.

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